Monday, March 18, 2013

Artist Of The Day: Tawny Peaks

What better time to talk about Tawny Peaks than in the days before March Madness? The twinkly emo band came out of the depths of New Jersey to release one of the strongest efforts of the genre of 2012 with their self titled album. The dual vocal dynamic of Charlie Perris and Molly Grund is easily the group's distinguishing feature, as they pull off a technique that is rarely (if ever) used in modern emo music. Perris's voice isn't classically strong, but its empathetic quality is endearing while Grund's sweeter timbre makes the uncharacteristic harmonies work. Grund also takes the lead on the acoustic album highlight "March Sadness" (hence the opening reference). The band also shows an ability to use unconditional song structures and techniques knock them out of the park, best shown on fan favorite "Collect Calling." As the vocalists repeat the line "You act like the world's one giant fuse waiting to blow / And every tiny tremor digs into the very center of your soul," the song gradually speeds up, moving from a snail's pace to a sprint in only four repetitions. The band was just recently signed to Glass Nail Records, and is another great edition to the label's growing collection of talent. The label is finally issuing the record on vinyl, and while it doesn't look like it's going to ship until summer, be sure to get your orders in before it sells out. You can download the whole album for free on Bandcamp, and be sure to order the record here as well.